Northwestern University Archives to House the Garry Marshall Papers
Spring 2023 NULC Newsletter
Published May 30,2023
With his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and storied career as a writer, actor, director, and producer, Garry Marshall ’56 (’86, ’90, ’91 P) (’18, ’25 GP) has made an indelible mark on American film and television. Best known for creating a slew of hit sitcoms—including The Odd Couple, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, and Mork & Mindy—Marshall also directed popular feature films like Pretty Woman and The Princess Diaries.
Throughout his career and up until his death in 2016 at age 81, Marshall—a proud Northwestern University alumnus, parent, and grandparent—stayed connected to his alma mater. His legacy lives on at Northwestern with the donation of the Garry Marshall Papers to the University Archives.
The collection includes original scripts from film, television, and live performances—often with handwritten notes in the margins. It contains personal scrapbooks that Marshall drew upon for writing projects as well as correspondence, photos, business records, storyboards, and memorabilia like awards and movie posters.
“You have in this collection the history of American comedy,” says University Archivist Kevin Leonard ’77, ’82 MA, who played a major role in bringing the materials to Northwestern. This summer, the collection will be organized for research use, Leonard says, with the goal of opening to library patrons in September. In all, the collection spans about 70 linear feet of shelf space.
As an undergraduate student in the Medill School of Journalism (now the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications), Marshall wrote for the Daily Northwestern and performed in The Waa-Mu Show. His early career featured stints as a writer for The Lucy Show and The Dick Van Dyke Show. Marshall’s papers include material he wrote for comedians Joey Bishop, Vaughn Meader, and Jack Paar among many others, in the early days of late-night television. The collection also contains routines penned for celebrity roasts of Dean Martin and former presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.
Even as his fame grew, Marshall visited his alma mater often as a speaker and served as a trustee. A member of the Northwestern University Leadership Circle (NULC) for more than 25 years, he helped create and support several campus spaces including the Barbara and Garry Marshall Studio Wing in John J. Louis Hall, the Marjorie Ward Marshall Dance Center (named for Marshall’s mother, who ran a tap dance school in the basement of her Bronx apartment building), and the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Center for the Musical Arts.
Leonard believes Northwestern’s acquisition of the papers will provide a treasure trove for scholars, students, fans, and future biographers interested in American comedy from the 1960s to the early 2000s.
“Performing arts is one of the collecting areas I’ve been chasing after because of Northwestern’s stature in the arts and the stature of many alumni in those professions,” Leonard says. “It’s a curricular and research strength of the University.”
All three of Marshall’s children are Northwestern alumni. Two of his grandchildren have also studied at the School of Communication: One is an alumna, and the other is a current student.
Marshall’s wife, Barbara, and their children have strongly supported the effort to organize and house the materials at the University, Leonard adds. “They’ve treated Northwestern royally and graced us with this collection. It is a great record of American comedy from a much-admired son of Northwestern.”